There are numerous applications in our society where a covering for the hand is required. One example is for the serving of bakery goods, as the clerk does not wish to be seen to directly handle the customer's purchase. This need is presently being fulfilled by the clerk placing his or her hand in a polyethylene bag. There are many disadvantages to using a bag. It is often difficult to find the opening in which one is to insert ones hand. The bag falls off the hand, often at an inopportune moment, and it is difficult to manipulate articles properly.
The obvious solution to the problem is to form the polyethylene into a glove which will conform to the hand and be disposable when the task is completed. This has not been accomplished due to a number of problems. One problem is that upon application of heat to a thin film of polyethylene to form a glove, the polyethylene film disintegrates. The use of alternate materials has proven too costly, which inhibits use as a "disposable" glove. Another problem is one of functional design, as the attempts to resolve the problem have tended to be inferior products which add an additional problem of tearing to the problems inherent in plastic bags.